There is proposed an electronic control apparatus performing various control processes based on data that a radio for vehicle-to-vehicle communication and road-to-vehicle communication receives from a different vehicle and a roadside unit (the data is referred to as radio data or wireless data). This type of electronic control apparatus is mainly formed of a well-known microcomputer including a CPU, a RAM, and a ROM. Programs (applications) related to the various control processes are stored in the ROM or other nonvolatile memory.
In addition to the wireless data, this type of electronic control apparatus also inputs data indicative of vehicle status (referred to as in-vehicle data), which is outputted from in-vehicle instruments such as an in-vehicle sensor and another electronic control apparatus. That is, the electronic control apparatus performs various control processes by using the wireless data and in-vehicle data.
An electronic control apparatus in Patent Literature 1 uses the wireless data and in-vehicle data to perform a plurality of control processes in order to assist a user in driving a vehicle. More specifically, a radio media receiver (that is, a radio) successively receives infrastructure information (that is, wireless data) transmitted from a roadside unit and successively outputs the wireless data to the electronic control apparatus. The wireless data includes traffic light information indicative of a traffic light color, oncoming vehicle information indicative of the presence of an oncoming vehicle, and pedestrian information indicative of the presence of a pedestrian. Further, the electronic control apparatus successively receives various in-vehicle data from in-vehicle instruments through an in-vehicle network built in a vehicle.
From the wireless data and in-vehicle data, the electronic control apparatus generates data necessary for control processes (the data is referred to as the control data). The electronic control apparatus then performs a control process based on the generated control data and applications.